Dublin chairman denies attempting to 'poach' Mick O'Dwyer

DUBLIN GAA chairman John Bailey has hit out at Laois County Board suggestion on Monday night that Mick O'Dwyer was being 'poached' by the Dubs.

Asked if he had spoken to O'Dwyer about the Dublin vacancy, he repeated that the only time he had met him was at the recent Ladies Football Final in Croke Park - and that was a casual meeting.

He insisted that he would never attempt to 'poach' a manager involved with another county, but that he would have no difficulty in speaking to one who was available.

Describing as 'disingenuous' some of the comments made at the Laois meeting, he commented: "If they want to throw muck let them. The only way we will answer that will be on the field of play. Whatever the internal politics are in Laois, that's their business. I am not going to interfere.

"On the one hand they are saying Mick is gone and then they are trying to say he is being poached. I am supposed to have spoken with John O'Mahony, to have gone to Cork to meet with Paidí Ó Sé and had dinner with Pete McGrath in Dublin on Sunday. All of that is untrue. We should be allowed to get on and do our own business. I am not going to let anybody dictate to Dublin what we should do."

Bailey pointed out that he was part of a four-man committee set up by the County Board in Dublin to make a recommendation on a new manager. And, as soon as County Secretary John Costello returns from holidays (on November 8), they will complete that process.

At a more general level, he said that after developing Parnell Park and installing floodlights, the main focus is on implementing the recommendations of the Strategic Review Committee, which they hoped would be launched by the Taoiseach on November 22.

"Our total focus is to get coaches into the schools," he added.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the Laois football board has launched an attack on any county that might consider approaching O'Dwyer while he is manager of Laois.

"If what we are hearing is true, it is unprecedented in the GAA. I would appeal to other counties to let Laois run their own affairs," said Joe Dwyer, who is fuming that his county's relationship with O'Dwyer may have been destabilised by outside influences.

"Something must be in the air when Micko has gone from 6/1 to 2/1 for the Dublin job. He appeared to be happy here, though there were a few small problems.

"Three weeks ago the executive met in an emergency meeting and gave 100% support to Micko. He was delighted with that. He would hear stories from time to time and think he wasn't getting full support.

"The attendances at two players' meeting recently weren't good, but those players who didn't attend had valid excuse."